Barrier Occlusives Round Up aka 'Slugging'

So right around winter time I decided to venture out from using only Vaseline as a barrier occlusive. I wanted to test out a bunch of different options and do a round up post highlighting the differences. So here we go, I've been playing with all of these for easily three months or more, I feel pretty confident about how they work for me. If you want to read more about Barrier Repair in general you can read my comprehensive post HERE. The point of occlusives like these are to supplement your routine with a product that essentially helps slow down trans epidermal water loss (TEWL). By reducing TEWL your barrier stays happier due to the retained moisture content. Think of it really simply, even though your creams, serums and moisturizers have occlusives, humectants and emollients in them--they simply are not 100% occlusive meaning you will have water loss in the skin from TEWL. TEWL leads to drier skin leading to potential barrier issues.

For myself I have dry skin and rosacea which both inherently come with barrier issues anyway. So it is in my best interest to help keep TEWL more minimal, hence the use of barrier occlusives. I find them really useful actually. Basically I'm just using a small amount and patting it on over my moisturizer at night before bed. I also ended up using some of these other new occlusive variations in the daytime as well. So is this a 'slugging' round up post? I guess. I like the term barrier occlusive more. So let's start with the original, good old Vaseline. 100% white petrolatum jelly. Can use it on lips, face or even your baby's butt. It works everywhere. I think it's 99% occlusive for TEWL, it might be 100% but I feel like nothing is ever 100%. This is the heaviest and the stickiest. Not for everyone. I use this when I'm having my worst barrier issues, it is my rescue product. The reason this one is so popular is because it is so good at preventing TEWL and it's less than $2. Nothing beats it. Again though texture is not everyone's favorite. So I decided to see what else was out there. The rest of the products below will all be semi-occlusive compared to Vaseline and I'll start with the heaviest, most semi-occlusive to the least.

CeraVe Healing Ointment is 46.5% petrolatum plus mineral oil, paraffin, dimethicone, ceramides, cholesterol, hyaluronic acid and panthenol. So it's a hybrid. It has some extra hydrating and soothing goodies plus mineral oil (petrolatum derivative), dimethicone (silicone barrier protectant) and paraffin which is a good occlusive ingredient as well (wax). It's thinner than Vaseline as it's less than 50% compared to 100% petrolatum. It's still very occlusive but feels nicer on the skin, it feels thinner and less sticky. It's good for someone who doesn't want to use Vaseline but still want s something pretty occlusive. There are other hybrids as well.

Aquaphor Healing Ointment has 41% petrolatum, mineral oil, ceresin, lanolin alcohol, glycerin and bisabolol. This hybrid is also popular because it feels thinner, less sticky or heavy than Vaseline but it gets the job done relatively well. I like both of these as well. Aquaphor has slightly less petrolatum at 41%, also has mineral oil but then it differs by using ceresin (wax), lanolin alcohol (not a drying alcohol, think fatty alcohol or emollient) plus glycerin and soothing bisabolol. I actually find the texture of Aquaphor a bit thinner and smoother than CeraVe and I like it just a hint more due to the nicer spreading texture. I've done split faces with CeraVe and Aquaphor and honestly as they wear through the night there's really no difference. They are the same for me. Pick whichever hybrid you like the texture of better. I know there are other hybrids I just haven't tried them yet. Maybe next year I'll focus on some other ones and add to the round up.

Let's move onto Vanicream Moisturizing Ointment. This has hydrogenated polydecene (emollient), microcrystalline wax (wax from de-oiling petroleum meaning it's a byproduct), polyethylene (polymer), dimethicone (silicone barrier protectant), C30-45 alkyl methicone and C30-45 olefin (emollients). You'll notice there's no petrolatum or mineral oil, there's the one petroleum derived wax byproduct product, but other than that it's mostly emollients, polymers and silicone. It's lighter than Vaseline, CeraVe and Aquaphor. So if you want to try something more medium level this is it. It's got a silky kind of feel to it texture wise. I actually really like it and tend to use it more than Aquaphor/CeraVe.

Glass Lizzard Bouncy Balm is an indie brand product I heard about through Instagram. It has water, cyclopentasiloxane (silicone), glycerin, methyl trimethicone (evaporating silicone), dimethicone (silicone barrier protectant), fatty alcohols, niacinamide, PCA dimethicone (siloxane polymer), squalane, mushroom extract, ceramide NP, ammonium acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP copolymer (polymer), cica, neem, licorice, sodium hyaluronate and more. Basically thing extracts, hydrators, polymers, silicones and so on. No petroleum derived products (that I'm aware of). If that's really important to you in a barrier product then I highly suggest this one. It has a texture similar to Vanicream Ointment but it's a hint thinner and more smooth. It also is the only water based one I've seen. I really love the smooth texture of this one. Yes it's similar to Vanicream, but I like this one more. The texture is more elegant. Both Vanicream and Glass Lizzard are similar levels a step below Aquaphor and CeraVe and another step below Vaseline in heaviness. Glass Lizzard is easily one of the best ones of the bunch. It lasts all night and doesn't feel really heavy. I love it and totally recommend it.

La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5 is hugely popular in the barrier repair/occlusive category. It's water based (La Roche-Posay thermal spring water) and has dimethicone, glycerin, shea butter, panthenol, Madecassoside, copper and zinc. It's like an ointment style product. Now I know many slug with it and use it last, some use it under their moisturizer. Some may get away with it as a moisturizer. It's mostly homectants with soothing extracts plus dimethicone for protecting the skin barrier. Shea butter does give it a little fatty acids and extra occlusion in addition to the dimethicone. I find it way less occlusive than the petrolatum style ones. It's even less than the Vanicream/Glass Lizzard for me. I feel like it just wears off my skin so quickly. It's great for combo/oily skin but if you're really dry I might use this in conjunction with a different occlusive.

Build (skincare) B-Balm is another new to the market indie brand barrier balm. It's a different take on the barrier balm with squalane, caprylic/capric triglyceride (emollient), silica dimethyl silylate (thickening agent), petrolatum, glycerin, polymethylsilsesquioxane (texture enhancer), tribehenin (thickening agent), bisabolol (soothing, antioxidant). This is an oil meets gel hybrid product. It's lighter than the above products and I see why many combo/oily skin people have been loving this. It's like a gel meets oil meets hint of petrolatum barrier balm. Think thin. In comparison to the others it's thinner, more oil textured and consequently it lasts less time on me than the above. I find my skin either soaks this up in a few hours or it pills due to the more oil based nature. I got quite a bit of pilling with this one. If you used a more minimal routine than me as in a combo or oily skin routine I could see how this would be groundbreaking. I feel like this and Glass Lizzard are fun new options in this category of skincare. Glass Lizzard lasts longer and is thicker so personal preference will be important in which barrier occlusive you prefer. They're all good.

Lets move into sticks. Sticks are great options for adding a quick easy even portable layer of barrier occlusive protection for the skin. Vaseline has an All-Over Body Balm has petrolatum, ethylhexyl palmitate and cetearyl alcohol (emollients), paraffin and ozokerite (waxes). It's cheap and simple. Easy to carry this around. I have one in my purse, at my desk at work and by the bed on my night stand. This is great under your eyes, around the nose or on your cheeks if you get particularly dry there like I do. I use this so much because it's portable and light textured. It doesn't make you look like a greasy disco ball like actual Vaseline so it's a nice light option if you want semi-occlusive. It's more occlusive than oil serum sticks which I'll move onto next. I really got into this one when I was suffering from mask related irritation from rubbing and it created extra dryness. This Vaseline stick gave me a nice layer under my mask at work to kind of form a little barrier and help protect the skin. That's why I use it so much. I just really love how light it is but it lasts way longer than an oil stick. It gives me better relief.

TATCHA Serum Stick was the first stick product I tried. It's essentially an oil stick. It has squalane plus plant  extracts like Japanese lemon balm and their signature Hadasei-3 (fermented green tea, rice, algae). This also has some waxes that give it shape and act as an occlusive. I find oils and balms really aren't that occlusive for my dry skin, they tend to get burned up or eaten up by my skin quickly. My dry skin loves oils so they just disappear fast. They're not nearly the same level as things like petrolatum for reducing TEWL. I actually didn't include balms in here for that reason. I guess I could consider them a semi-occlusive layer. They would be occlusive enough for some skin types. The only balms I'm really into right now is either May Lindstrom Blue Cocoon, Fifty7Kind NADI, Live Botanical Sanctuary Barrier Balm and Earthwise Beauty Yasuni. I like this TATCHA stick and it helps soothe my dry skin for a little while but it does not last long.

Em Cosmetics Face Cuddle Moisture Balm is the second oil based stick I grabbed. It has ethylhexyl palmitate (emollient), polyethylene (polymer), coffee seed and sacha inchi oils plus squalane. I love the scent of this one, so earthy from the coffee seed oil. I really love coffee seed oil. This one is pretty much like TATCHA, it lasts maybe an hour on me but it gives nice relief. What I actually like is putting this one then adding the Vaseline stick over it. Longevity wise the Vaseline stick is more than both of these. But combo to oily skin might enjoy the oils more to the Vaseline stick, personal preference. Both will give a semi-occlusive layer.

Next into the non-traditional occlusive barriers is EVY Daily Repair Mousse. You're likely familiar with their sunscreen but all their products have a patented base that acts as a semi-permeable layer. This base is available as a mousse without the SPF. You can use it on your hands, face or wherever. I've used it under my mask as a skin protectant. Read more about it on my EVY post HERE. It's interesting but not the most occlusive. I get maybe two hours out of it. I do like it over an oil stick for extra oomph.

This was an interesting category on the market. Stiff yet airy creams meant to be a last layer as an occlusive type product. MAKE Beauty Hibernation Capsule is refillable. It has L-lysine and L-arginine oligopeptides, synthetic polymers plus an antioxidant blend including upcycled apple extract. So I thought OK this is interesting. It's a fluffy thick style cream. I used it as a last step and honestly it's really not that occlusive for me. It really doesn't do that much occlusion. Minimal. I used it as a morning pre-skincare product for a while. I liked it in that aspect. Meaning I put it on the weekends first thing when my face is really dry when I get up. It gives me a little moisture and relieves the tightness for a bit. Sometimes though it's weird and I find this drying, sometimes it's not. I think it's just how my skin feels at the moment. I would put it as likely best as a semi-occlusive layer for more combo to oily skin, I think it will shine the most for them.

Speaking of sometimes drying, I find these types of polymer style products/creams can be drying. I don't know what it is about them. It's not all of them just some of them. Might be the type of polymer? I'm not a chemist I can only give my experience. I find MAKE and this Naturium Intense Overnight Sleeping Cream are very similar, not only in texture but effect and feel on the skin.

I did retry NIOD Voicemail Masque again to compare to the others for this post. This is essentially a silicone sleeping mask with postbiotics and plant stem cells. It's very runny so think thin coating. It's really not that occlusive for me. Adds a hint but nothing that much. I think this shines for combo to oily skin the most. For dry it won't be occlusive enough. You'll have to use something else with it. Or put this over a really heavy cream. Ultimately it's not really a barrier occlusive for me but I know it works for less dry skin well as a last step. I do want to try HYdration Vaccine again and see how it fares like this. It's been too many years since I have tried it and I need to revisit it one day.